Ararat’s reserves side bundled out of the finals series in straight sets, suffering a second and season-ending loss on Sunday. After narrowly losing to Horsham Saints last Saturday, the Rats had a chance to make amends against the Southern Mallee Giants at Dimboola in a do or die semi-final. A swirling wind made effective ball movement difficult in the first term, with the Giants holding a slight one-point lead at the first break. The old saying of bad kicking is bad football proved true in the second term as the Rats dominated early on but could not convert their chances. Read more: Rats hold off Saints in thriller They went goalless with five behinds will the Giants had opposite luck in their forward 50, converting for four goals to move out to a crucial 22-point lead. More inaccuracy in the third term prevented the Rats from cutting the deficit, but they were still within touching distance of 28 points at the final break. Any hopes of a comeback were quickly dashed early in the final term however, as the Giants piled on two quick goals to secure a spot in the preliminary final. Read more: Junior Rats through to grand finals The Giants booted six goals in the final term to finish in front 13.10 (88) to 3.9 (27). Jack Landrigan had three goals to lead the way for the Giants. Jacob Bates and Cody Lindsay were Ararat’s best. It will be a long off-season for the Rats who finished third on the ladder but were unable to win a final from their two chances. The Giants will play Minyip-Murtoa at Murtoa in next weekend’s preliminary final.